All right guys, here we go! Kai vs Thalen! Please comment/vote, you support means so much!
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The Long Goodbye Cont.
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Kai was halfway to the tower when McKay restored the power. She flinched as an alarm began sounding throughout the city and doors began sliding closed as the city went into lockdown. She couldn't imagine why McKay would have instituted a lockdown before they managed to secure Phoebus or Thalen which meant there was a strong possibility it was one of them to institute it.
She ran through the last set of closing doors that led into the tower. She hit the stairs at the base of the tower and charged up them. The alarm made it impossible to hear anything else and she used the opportunity to gain ground. If she couldn't hear any movement, no human would be able to hear her running feet on the stairs.
"Zian, this is Caldwell," her comm activated. "I can't help noticing you are not in the infirmary protecting Doctor Beckett."
Kai stilled, but didn't respond. There was really nothing to say. She had disobeyed a direct order and knew she would be facing punishment for that once this was all over, particularly if they lost Weir and Sheppard. But nothing they would do to her could compare to what the Mortii Tribunal had done in the past and Sheppard was worth it.
Caldwell cleared his throat and continued. "Weir has put the city under a lock down. I want you to go after Sheppard. You and he are locked in the same section. He's one floor up," he said. It was clear it pained him to ask Kai for help, but at this point Kai was their only option.
Kai continued up the stairs at a run. "I'll contact you as soon as I have him," she agreed. "Zian, out."
Kai was halfway up the next story when she heard Thalen yelling. "Is this what you wanted Phoebus?!" he railed. "Another stalemate? I thought you wanted to finish this?!"
Kai crept onto the floor. She moved into cover as she worked to clear the floor. It was intimidating to be going against someone with all the knowledge and skill of Colonel Sheppard at his fingertips. She had spent a lot of time sparring against him and he knew all of her tactics. There was a shot from the other side of the door she was approaching. She slid to the side and pulled her stunner.
Thalen pried the door open, sticking Sheppard's head and shoulders through to get better leverage on the heavy doors in a risky move Sheppard himself never would have attempted. Kai stepped out from cover and leveled the stunner at his chest. Thalen met her gaze, surprise flickering in John's hazel eyes, but his expression was all wrong. Thalen opened his mouth to say something, but she fired without hesitation, hitting him in the chest. His body collapsed, still trapped between the doors.
Kai stepped towards him, snatching the gun from his hand and tucked it into her belt. She reached up and touched her comm. "This is Kai, I have him."
"Good," Caldwell said, actually sounding surprised by how quickly Kai had found him. "Secure him and stand by for further instructions. The next move is hers."
Kai exhaled. "Understood," she responded.
Kai glanced around, trying to decide how she was going to get the Colonel out of the doors. Using one of the large, decorative vases left behind from the ancients, she managed to wedge the doors open another couple inches. She winced as John's body collapsed forward, hitting the ground with a resounding thud. She grimaced, there was nothing she could have done to soften his landing, she just hoped he hadn't been injured. She grabbed the shoulders of his flak vest and dragged him clear of the doors. She pulled the vase out and the doors snapped closed.
She went back to his body, crouching beside him. Unconscious, with his expression slack, he looked much more like John again. She laid him out and pulled zip ties from her vest securing his wrists and ankles. She stood and pulled her stunner, positioning herself so she could protect him if Phoebus found them.
Kai's comm activated a short time later. "Kai, we've been requested to put the Colonel in front of the nearest security camera."
"Understood." Kai replied. She chewed on her lip thoughtfully. She was pretty sure the nearest camera was down the next corridor. She tucked the stunner into her belt, grabbed the shoulders of his vest and dragged him across the floor. Once he was laying where he would be fully visible she straightened.
The overhead comms activated in the section. "I'm not surprised that you were the only one who managed to catch him," Weir's voice was a sensual purr. "The only one to ever get to John Sheppard."
Kai stared up at the camera with a glare. "What do you want?" she demanded. She refused to rise to the other woman's baiting especially knowing every single person in the control room was listening to their conversation.
Phoebus let out a peel of laughter but didn't bother with a reply. She was having too much fun, and her victory was so close she could taste it. "We're just going to wait until he regains consciousness."
Kai crouched beside Sheppard waiting for the stunner to wear off. When he stirred she pulled her stunner back out of it's holster and aimed it at his chest. She wasn't taking any chances.
He froze looking up at her as though he was surprised to see her. "Kai," he said and a pleased smile lit his face. "Not bad for a girl," he joked. "I suppose you volunteered for this mess too?"
Kai scowled at their old jokes. The words were right, but something felt wrong.
He must have seen her doubt on her face because his expression turned gentle. "It's me," he implored staring up at her, his eyes wide and sincere.
Kai cocked her head, unwilling to trust it. He pushed himself up and reached for her. His hands, though still bound, were gentle as they cupped the side of her face.
"Thank god it was you and not one of Caldwell's marines," he muttered and his fingers locked against the nape of her neck as he tried to pull her down to kiss him.
Kai froze, this wasn't Sheppard. Sheppard had spent the last few weeks being angry with her over her decision to leave. Yes, he had kissed her before, but he would never repeat the gesture when they were in front of a camera with the control room watching. John was more private than that.
Kai pulled back and hoping she was right, headbutted him. His head snapped back and he lost his balance with his hands still tied. He hit the ground and hissed in pain. He shoved himself back up onto his elbows, and Thalen contorted John's face into a mask of rage.
Kai snorted. "Hello Thalen," she greeted. She leaned towards him. "Don't waste your energy trying to convince me you're John," she said resolutely.
"Don't you see what they're doing?" Thalen exclaimed, still trying to sell the lie. "They're pitting us against each other! You of all people know me!"
Kai reached out telepathically and touched the connection, but there was still nothing on the other side. She was totally alone. She swallowed back the inherent fear that went along with that and forced her face into an expressionless mask. She had originally only thought about John's knowledge of her fighting skills and tactics, it had never occurred to her that Thalen could use John's memories to hurt her on a personal level. She had never allowed herself to be vulnerable in this way before and she couldn't give him anything else he could use to hurt her.
She leaned forward so her face was only inches from his. "You're right, I do know you, and you're not John," she snarled.
"Kai please," he begged her, his eyes widening imploringly.
Kai only had a brief second to doubt herself, to wonder if the imprint had somehow damaged the connection. If maybe she had misjudged somehow. But if that were the case than Sheppard had just tried to kiss her in front of everyone. Not possible. John Sheppard was The Colonel first and foremost. He would never express personal feelings, if there were any, in the middle of an operation.
"Oh please," Phoebus drawled over the comm. "You call that acting?" she teased.
Sheppard's head snapped up to the camera and his whole body went stiff. His eyes hardened as he lifted his chin to stare at the camera. "Phoebus," Thalen growled, dropping the charade. He pushed himself up to his knees as he glared up at the camera.
Kai pulled back, leveling the stunner back at Thalen's chest.
"There's that look of defeat I love," Phoebus growled.
"Wrong again, still hatred," Thalen snapped.
"I guess I'm satisfied with this," Phoebus conceded. "Kai, kill him," she ordered menacingly.
Kai's heart stopped in her throat and she froze, turning to the camera and then back to Thalen on his knees in front of her.
"You don't have to listen to her," Thalen said wryly, and he flashed her the same smirk John used so often.
Bile rose in her throat.
"Kill him now!" Phoebus ordered. "Or I vent Halon fire suppressant into all of the living spaces in Atlantis."
Kai's stomach dropped as her thoughts raced. With trembling fingers she reached up and activated her comm. "Can she do this?" Kai whispered.
She remembered when the Halon had been brought in, Weir had been dead set against it because it was incredibly toxic to humans, but Stargate command had overruled her. Now it seemed Phoebus was using one of Elizabeth's greatest fears against her.
"I believe so," Caldwell replied grimly.
"How many are at risk?" Kai asked, her mind already calculating, but she didn't know enough about the life support systems to know the extent of what Phoebus or even Elizabeth would know how to do.
There was a pause and Kai imagined the flurry of activity going on as someone calculated the numbers for Caldwell. While she waited she stared down into Sheppard's hazel eyes. With Thalen staring back at her from them they didn't have the same effect on her they usually did. It might be his body, but it wasn't John.
"Three quarters of the expedition," Caldwell replied a few moments later.
Kai tightened her jaw. It wouldn't have mattered if it was only three people in danger. If John survived this, he would never forgive her if she sacrificed others to save his life.
She turned back to the camera. "Why are you doing this?" she demanded angrily.
"I have spent my entire life at war with his world. Thousands have died with no hope for victory both sides reduced to a mere handful of fighters. If he really is the last, then in the end my people will have won," Phoebus replied, her voice brittle even over the comms.
"Don't believe her!" Thalen called from behind her.
"Believe me when I say I have absolutely nothing to lose. In a very short time I will feel excruciating pain, this body will convulse and I will cease to exist. That is what is ahead for me. All I can hope for now is to achieve victory for my people."
Kai stared up at the camera so Phoebus would be able to see her sincerity. "Phoebus your people are dead. They lost or won a war so long ago it doesn't matter."
"It matters to me," Phoebus's voice cracked with emotion and Kai knew there was no rationalizing with her. Phoesbus believed so fervently in her cause she was beyond reason.
She turned back to face Thalen. He was staring up at her through John's hazel eyes. "If you kill me," he growled. "You kill him...He cares for you more than you know." he added quickly. "Should I tell you? I have every single memory, rolling around up here," he said with jerk of his chin.
"Stop," Kai snapped.
"When you fought the Genii together. When you gave him your blade on the The Wraith Planet, you almost died on the Wraith planet, do you want to know how he felt? His terror? What about when that thing took him over? What your scent did to him. You touched his face when he was a monster, is that because you're a monster too?" Thalen spewed poison at her using John's voice. Every single private moment they had shared together was pouring out of his mouth for everyone to hear.
"His guilt over what Ford did to you. The night on the Hive ship..." Thalen dragged off and a suggestive smirk crossed his face. "The beach..." he smiled at her but it had too much teeth. "That's a good one. Even I enjoyed that memory...course that was when it all changed. The night with the Mortii when he came to the-"
"Stop!" Kai snarled.
Thalen laughed cruelly. "He loves you, you know. He's too stubborn to ever admit it. Too busy locking himself away behind this ridiculous mask of The Colonel..." he stopped and cocked his head to the side as he stared up at Kai. "Oh, you didn't know?" he laughed.
"He doesn't," Kai said with absolute certainty, but she could feel tears burning in the backs of her eyes. "You're just trying to save your own skin."
"Of course I am," Thalen agreed. "But are you going to kill the man who loves you?"
Kai's breathing kicked up as denial choked her. She turned back to face the camera. "Please don't make me do this," she said.
"You don't have to!" John's voice shouted behind her, but it wasn't John.
"Shoot him!" Phoebus ordered coldly.
Kai shook her head. "I don't have a gun."
Phoebus scoffed. "Then use your Blade Mortii," she spit out the word. "How much blood have you spilled with that Blade?" she asked rhetorically.
Kai hesitated.
"Draw your Blade Mortii or I will release the gas!" Phoebus shouted into the comms.
With shaking hands Kai tucked the stunner into her belt and pulled one of her Blades. She stared down at the black Blade and back into John's face. Her hand tightened around the handle of the Blade until her knuckles turned white. The unyielding metal bit into her skin. She couldn't do this, her whole body locked down. She wouldn't survive this.
The comm activated and startled her as Caldwell's voice sounded in her ear. "She has the capability to do what she says," he reported and it shocked her as his voice dropped, softening with something that may have been sympathy. "Kai, I'm not going to tell you what to do."
"I am!" Phoebus snarled impatiently. "Killed him. Kill him now! You don't want to test me. I will kill all of your people! KILL HIM!"
Kai turned back to face Thalen, he stared up at her, John's hazel eyes were narrowed suspiciously in a way she had never seen before. Tears gathered in her eyes for maybe the first time since she was a little girl.
Part of her thought it was better that she couldn't feel him, better that she wouldn't feel his pain as her Blade ended his life. But part of her selfishly wanted to feel him just one more time. She should have known it would always end like this. It shouldn't have surprised her that her past would end up destroying the one good thing she had found. They all had to pay for their sins eventually.
"Sheppard doesn't believe you'll do this," Thalen growled staring at her Blade.
Kai's heart was thundering in her ears, and all she could feel was the cold of the knife in her hand and the hot tears running down her cheeks.
Locked away, trapped deep inside his own mind and body, the sight of Kai's tears had John raging. He was entirely powerless to stop this asshole from hurting her. When the retrovirus had taken over John was smothered until there was nothing left. The imprint was different, it was like John was locked away in a cage, stuck as a passenger watching Thalen ruin his life.
"Kai," he spoke her name in exactly the same way John did and it made something tighten in her chest. He cocked his head. "He's screaming away in here right now. Every part of him. Do you want me to tell you about the first time he knew that he loved you? I could..."
It killed her to know this bastard knew all of their past. Every quiet, private moment between them was his to use to hurt her. "Forgive me John," she whispered, her voice breaking.
"Stab your Blade into his heart," Phoebus ordered.
Kai's hands were shaking.
"So what are you going to do Instrument Zian?" Thalen mocked.
"I'm going to do exactly what John would want me to do," she said twirling the Blade through her fingers as tears trailed down her cheeks.
"How would you know? I'm the one in his head," Thalen said and the predatory look he put on John's face was unrecognizable.
"NOW!" Phoebus screamed.
Kai exhaled and stepped around behind him. There was no way she could do this facing him. She reached out and laid a hand on John's shoulder with her free hand. She was trembling and she felt Thalen tighten, but there was no way for him to fight back.
Kai's comm activated. "Stand down ! Zian this is Caldwell stand down, I repeat stand down! McKay's got it!"
Kai let out a gasping sigh as relief made her light headed. She flung the Blade away from her like it was on fire. It hit the far wall and clattered against the floor. She hung her head, exhaling in relief as she steadied herself with her grip on John's shoulder.
"NO!" Phoebus screamed into the comm, but she didn't matter anymore.
Kai collapsed to her knees and let out a sob of relief.
"This is Caldwell, all security teams, resume your search for Doctor Weir," Caldwell called over the loud speaker.
Kai shoved herself to her feet, scrubbing away her tears. There was still work to be done. She drew the stunner once more and moved to the door.
"Kai!" Thalen called from behind her. "Come on," he said. "You can't leave me like this."
She glared down at him imperiously. Her fury over what he had done was a living thing in her chest. "I won't let her hurt him," she said resolutely.
He flinched like he had been struck and Kai frowned. Thalen scowled. "You don't know how determined she is," he groaned. "You can't let her win," he growled and his jaw tightened. He cried out in pain and collapsed back onto the floor.
"He is going into convulsions," Kai called into her comm. She ran to his side and steadied John so he wouldn't hurt himself.
"Do not release him, no matter what happens," Caldwell ordered.
A long ways off Kai could hear gun fire. The convulsions stopped and John's body relaxed. He exhaled and his eyes fluttered open. "Kai," he said in relief.
She knelt beside him. Resting a hand on his shoulder. "Is that really you?" she asked. She tried to reach for him down the line of their connection.
"You're never going to believe me, so I'm not even going to try," he replied.
A gun cocked behind her and she froze, her focus had been on their connection instead of paying attention to their surroundings and Phoebus had managed to sneak up on them.
"He's still unconscious," Kai called with her back to Phoebus.
John's eyes flickered to her face and he quickly closed his eyes to play along.
"I'm not really sure how many shots I have left in this thing or I would have shot you already. I said back off!" Phoebus yelled.
Kai slid her hand along John's, the warmth of his skin against hers was reassuring, but she felt nothing else that made her believe it was really him. She slid her stunner into his hand before she stood, raising her hands in surrender and turned to face Phoebus.
"Unconscious or not, I want to see his face." Phoebus growled.
She took another step into the room and Sheppard sat up, firing the stunner at Weir. Weir's body hit the ground and Kai whipped around. She kicked the stunner perfectly, sending it flying out of his hand across the room. He shot her a disgruntled look.
"Are you all right?" Lorne asked as he and his team came into the room just behind Weir.
"Yes," Kai assured him. "Please secure Doctor Weir and bring her down to the infirmary."
"You got it," Lorne agreed, stepping up to Elizabeth's unconscious form.
"How did you know it was me?" Sheppard asked, still sitting on the floor.
Kai dropped down to a knee so her face was only inches from his. "It isn't. But you were going to shoot her either way..." she leaned her head towards Thalen so no one else could overhear. "If you think you can fool me that you're John, then I think you need to review John's memories of me."
"Oh I did," he said with a wicked smile. "And you're absolutely right. You're a killer, you disgust him. There's no way he could ever trust you," he called loud enough for everyone to hear. His words coming out of John's mouth hurt more than they should. She pushed herself to her feet, moving away from him and he chuckled cruelly.
"So tell me," he called after her. "Is the reason you can tell it's not John that Bond thing you keep lying to him about? Oh yeah," Thalen said when he saw the expression on Kai's face. "He asked Beckett about it. Beckett had no idea what he was talking about. Seems your little secret is out. The two Ancients and your Mortii assassin have confirmed it. He knows you've been lying to him."
Kai froze. Lorne looked back and forth between them before quickly focusing a little too hard on securing Doctor Weir. She tightened her jaw, beyond furious that Thalen was spilling their secrets in front of an entire room of marines. She whipped around and punched him in the face. His head snapped back and he crumpled to the ground unconscious.
"Colonel Sheppard will need to go to the infirmary too," Kai called to Lorne before she stalked out of the room.
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John groaned as he woke. His head was pounding and the left side of his face was tender.
"Good evening Colonel," Doctor Beckett called brightly as he came into the room. "Are you with us?"
Sheppard scowled as he looked around the room. Doctor Weir was on the gurney beside him; her hands, arms and feet secured with cuffs.
"How are you feeling?" Beckett asked.
"Like..." he drew off as scattered and disjointed memories fought to realign into a timeline in his mind. "Like a very angry Mortii punched me," he said. He reached up to cup the side of his head but his hands were also bound. He frowned down at the cuffs. "Think we could get these off now?" he asked rattling them obnoxiously against the metal.
Beckett raised his eyebrows but didn't say anything. Instead, he turned around and Kai stepped into the room. Her stormy grey eyes were serious as she looked at Sheppard. She closed them briefly and a tremble went down her body, a frown of concentration wrinkling between her eyebrows.
The warmth of their connection opened in Johns chest and he fought to not to let it show on his face how much it meant to him. The fact that she was still willing to touch that connection at all after all Thalen had said was a relief.
Kai opened her eyes and nodded to Beckett. "It's him," she confirmed.
John looked back and forth between them but Kai stepped back out of sight.
"All right," Beckett said brightly. He stepped up and unlocked the cuffs. He looked John over. "Well, I'd like to keep you for observation for another couple hours, but it looks like with the exception of the massive headache from our lovely Kai you came through this just fine. The bullet was just a graze on your arm. I already stitched it up."
"Thank Doc," John said gratefully.
Beckett nodded. "I suggest you get some rest," he glanced back over his shoulder. Kai wasn't visible, but he knew she hadn't left the infirmary yet. He clapped his hands together. "I'm going to go do some work in my office. Just call if you need anything," he said and he hurried from the room.
As soon as Beckett was gone, Kai stepped back into the doorway.
John glanced towards Weir, but she was still unconscious. He raised his gaze to meet hers. "Thank you," he finally said, because he didn't know what else to say.
Kai's eyes rose in surprise.
"For stopping me," he clarified. "He could have done a lot of damage with me..." he stopped and drew in a ragged breath as he rapidly sifted through more memories. "He did a lot of damage," John confessed.
Kai nodded, moving to the end of his bed. She wrapped her arms around her midsection. She didn't know what she was still doing here. She shouldn't be here. She didn't know what to say. "I-" she started but stopped, pressing her lips together.
John watched her. He remembered the tears that had run down her cheeks and he had been powerless to stop it. "Kai-" he started and he stopped. He looked down at his hands. "I'm sorry," he said in a low tone.
Kai looked up at him frowning. "You didn't do anything you need to apologize for."
John looked down at his hands. "I think we both know that isn't true," he said gently. "Thalen said some cruel things to you, and you..." he dragged off and shook his head. His chest was tight with guilt. He should have been able to protect her from this.
"John," Kai said gently. She took another step towards him. Her heart was thundering in her chest with indecision about what to do, but she needed to comfort him. "I chose to go after you. I knew what I was doing."
John pressed his lips together into a line and nodded. "Yeah I suppose you did." He agreed then he cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I'm sorry this delayed you again. Seems like things haven't slowed down here in a while."
Kai swallowed she stepped up next to the gurney and looked down at his hands. It had been so strange watching some one else move his body. Before she lost her courage she reached out and took his hand in hers.
John froze, holding himself perfectly still as Kai held his hand in hers. She turned it over staring at it and ran the tips of her fingers over the callouses on his palms. A shiver went down his spine but he forced himself to hold perfectly still. He couldn't help feeling like if he moved suddenly he would startle her and this moment would be lost like so many had before.
"I'm not leaving," she said her voice barely above a whisper.
John froze, his fingers closing over hers. "Really?" he asked hardly willing to allow himself to believe it.
Kai nodded. Beside them Elizabeth stirred. John turned to look at her. "Elizabeth?" he asked as she stirred once more.
Kai dropped his hand and quickly moved to the door. John turned to look after her. "Kai," he called. She stopped and met his gaze.
John swallowed nervously. "It was on Lodan," he said without explanation. "Under the stars on Lodan."
Kai froze, her heart thundering in her chest as she realized what he was saying.
Elizabeth's eyes blinked open just as the door slid closed behind Kai.
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I hope you enjoyed reading this update as much as I enjoyed writing it!
Thank you all for your amazing support!